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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  2. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  3. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  4. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  5. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  6. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  7. False peace will not ________________.
  8. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  9. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  10. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  11. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  12. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  13. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  14. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  15. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  16. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  17. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  18. It's one o'clock ________________.
  19. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  20. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  21. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  22. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  23. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  24. We had a fire ________________ at school today.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. sharp — clever
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. bass — the fish
  4. sharp — with an edge
  5. mine — for digging
  6. hide — animal skin
  7. last — to go on
  8. last — finally
  9. dip — a sauce
  10. wax — to grow
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. wax — for sculpting
  13. drill — army training
  14. mine — belonging to me
  15. dip — to dunk
  16. last — final
  17. drill — the tool
  18. sharp — exactly
  19. dip — to sink
  20. bass — the instrument
  21. wax — in the ear
  22. mine — an explosive
  23. bass — low music
  24. drill — a practice

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com